Leading in the Academic Enterprise® Series

A three-part series focusing on academic leadership.

Leading in the Academic Enterprise

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Available as an on-campus seminar

Business school leaders are responsible for moving their institutions forward in the face of increasing competition, changing expectations, and new demands. In this context, the ability to lead effectively and initiate change is required throughout business schools – not only in the dean’s office. This calls for the development of leadership capacity amongst the next generation of leaders, while simultaneously expanding the capabilities of current leaders.

Leading in the Academic Enterprise® series provides high-value, customized leadership development training that builds essential capabilities for the professional development of current and future academic leaders. Based on extensive AACSB research and custom designed pedagogical tools, each seminar improves participants’ ability to:

Lead change – especially in the context of innovation, and in a low-authority environment

Lead for the entire academic enterprise while adopting a wide perspective in building, maintaining, and repairing trust; resolving conflict; coaching and mentoring

Each seminar provides opportunities to apply concepts through case studies and exercises during the seminars, while later applying those concepts within your school. Through the successful completion of the program and subsequent reflection exercises participants will earn an AACSB certificate.

Leading People and Organizational Change

When in a leadership position, have you ever found it difficult to lead change and build trust?

In the Leading People and Organizational Change segment of the three-part Leading in the Academic Enterprise® series, you will focus on Leading at the Crossroads of Change or leading from the middle instead of from the top or bottom. On day one, using case studies, you will explore, in a group setting, how to categorize stakeholders and define appropriate methods—Communications, Strategies, Tactics, and Sequencing—to avoid pitfalls.

On day two, you will learn how to build trust from three sources and to repair trust from different levels of damage, or ways to recover if you are unable to achieve either result. You will also learn how maintaining a balanced four-square life will translate to being a better leader.

Learning Outcomes

Discover how to structure communication with stakeholders and avoid creating communication pitfalls

Learn how to build coalitions, resolve conflict, and reallocate resources to enable innovation

Identify techniques for building or rebuilding trust in different scenarios

Grasp what it means to live a four-square life

Strategic Thinking and Execution

In business, as in life, there are always problems. The challenge is to accurately identify the root cause of an issue in order to creatively solve the correct one, which saves time, money, and frustration.

In the Strategic Thinking and Execution segment of the three-part Leading in the Academic Enterprise® series, you will discuss strategies and challenges for successful problem solving, as a leader, an individual, and as a team. On day one, using case studies, explore tools to systematically undergo problem identification and resolution processes. You will learn how to diagnose the core problem while avoiding potential traps that can derail achieving the optimum solution.

The focus of day two is creativity and the incorporation of strategic thinking. You will explore the creative process while learning how to strengthen your understanding and competence by using team exercises. Once you have a firmer comprehension on methods for encouraging creativity, you will merge all that you have learned into a comprehensive strategy for problem identification and creative resolution.

Learning Outcomes

Understand how to fundamentally change or advance strategic thinking capabilities individually and within teams, departments, and school-wide

Learn facilitation and communication skills to help lead the thinking of committees and teams more effectively

Understand why people solve the wrong problem and learn how to ask the right questions

Increase your creative thinking ability

Discover opportunities in your daily life where incorporating creative and strategic thinking can be vital to the outcome

Developing Leaders and Impactful Communication

Everyone has experienced the moment when a seemingly harmless interaction, in business or in life, has suddenly turned into a “bad” conversation.

In the Developing Leaders and Impactful Communication segment of the three-part Leading in the Academic Enterprise® series, you will learn on day one to identify the factors that lead to negative interactions and use tools to turn difficult conversations into productive ones.

On day two, you will further explore the techniques for leadership thinking by delving into coaching, evaluation, recruitment, and retention of staff and faculty. You will systematically use the five-stage process, learned on day one, of finding, framing, formulating, solving, and implementing while role-playing in team exercises.

Begin transforming your interactions from difficult to productive by signing up today.

Learning Outcomes

Identify triggers leading to difficult conversations and the processes and practices that provide the framework for positive interactions

Learn techniques for coaching, assessing, and evaluating faculty and staff

Discover best practices for recruitment and retention of faculty and staff

Leading Change Successfully in the Academic Enterprise

Now, more than ever, the academic enterprise faces an increasingly turbulent environment that requires leaders to engage their community in continuous innovation and change. Yet, the critical task of building new capabilities remains a leadership challenge because failure occurs much more frequently than success.

In this program, participants will learn a practical and proven method for leading change to build effective capabilities in the academic enterprise. The program introduces four categories of stakeholders and describes how success depends on adopting Communications, Strategies, Tactics, and Sequencing (CoSTS) that are specific for each category. Additionally, participants will learn about how to avoid critical impediments to change as well as strategies on how to recover should one of these impediments arise. The method will be will be illustrated through cases suites of successful and unsuccessful change efforts in universities.

Learning Outcomes

Develop ability to identify and categorize stakeholders

Understand how to utilize varying communications, strategies, tactics, and sequencing for each stakeholder category